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The European Union’s reimbursed program spent four years analyzing applications and only started four years later, according to the Court of Auditors.
The Operational Program to Support the Most Needy 2014-20, 85% financed by the European Fund for Aid for the Most Needy, was limited to 32% execution, revealed an audit by the Court of Auditors (TC) . For the first four years, the implementers were busy with “preparation, planning and implementation tasks.”
The Operational Program to Support the Most Needy (POAPMC) had 176.9 million euros for the 2014-2020 period in funds from the European Fund to Help the Most Needy, to which was added 31.2 million euros paid by the state. The total, which exceeds 208 million euros, “does not reflect the increase in funds proposed by the European Commission for this program”, in addition to being “insufficient to cover the costs of the beneficiary entities with the transport and storage of food products” , note the TC.
“In 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, preparation, planning and application tasks were carried out,” explains the TC. The program supported 37,615 people in 2017, 79,037 people in 2018, and 92,632 people in 2019.
According to Eurostat, in 2018, 21.6% of the Portuguese population (2.2 million inhabitants) lived at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Portugal still does not have a National Strategy to Combat Poverty, underlines the TC, which was informed by the office of the Minister of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security to be presented in the first quarter of 2021.
Difficulties in the distribution and suitability of the baskets for families may have caused some of the delays, according to the TC report. The entity recommends that, as foreseen in the program and in the context of the pandemic, “a model of distribution of food and basic necessities is adopted through vouchers or electronic cards” that “will save costs and resources, favor autonomy, strengthening the local economy, alleviating the limitations derived from merchandise procurement procedures and storage difficulties, and ensuring greater security during the pandemic period. “
The program also needs to be “fine-tuned”: the TC recommends the articulation of existing policies and social support and the creation of a poverty monitoring system for better orientation of the POAPMC.
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